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The Roanoke Times

File 1960 Dr. L.C. Downing, Roanoke City School Board member, broke ground for Lincoln Terrace Elementary School in December 1957. The school opened in September 1958. It replaced Gainsboro Elementary School, which opened in 1898.

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1998 (10 years ago)

n "Almost two years after Roanoke County officials set forth their master plan to build the county's largest park next to Spring Hollow Reservoir, little has been done. County officials still intend to develop hiking, biking and equestrian trails on the more than 700 acres surrounding the reservoir. They just don't have the money to do it."

n "Round Hill Primary School in Roanoke will become Southwest Virginia's first public Montessori school with an educational system designed to help children learn from their natural surroundings and their fondness for manipulating objects. The city school system has received a $2.3 million, three-year federal grant to make Round Hill a magnet school based on the Montessori method."

n "St. John's Episcopal and Deliverance Church Ministries ... have embarked on a project to import goods produced by the people of Binaba and sell them at a store in Roanoke. All of the store's proceeds will be returned to the village [in Ghana] in the form of medical supplies and provisions."

n "Utilizing a suffocating defense and a killer big-play offense, Tech handed Clemson its worst home loss since a 41-0 spanking by Georgia in 1976." The final score was Tech 37, Clemson 0.

1983 (25 years ago)

n "Two Roanoke legislators say they plan to do something about a lack of air conditioning and ventilation for the elderly psychiatric patients at Catawba Hospital."

n "Smaller F28 jets could help Roanoke and Richmond preserve their present level of service by Piedmont at a time when the airline is preparing to drop all flights to its own hometown."

n "A busload of 40 resident associates of the Smithsonian Institution are arriving in the area to sample some of the historic charms of Bedford, Salem, Roanoke and Fincastle."

n "Waylon and Jessi and Jerry perked just like Maxwell House coffee Saturday night: Good to the last drop. With four acts -- Waylon Jennings, Jessi Colter, Jerry Reed and Kiernan Kane -- the 4,469 country music fans at the Roanoke Civic Center got a big bill you don't see very often these days."

1958 (50 years ago)

n " 'The Restless Gun' rode through Roanoke's streets yesterday. But he was not restless. In fact, his restless steed was an air-conditioned limousine. It was a visit to his hometown for actor John Payne, star of the TV horse opera."

n "The Thursday Morning Music Club, one of the largest and oldest organizations in the city of Roanoke, will observe its 50th anniversary this fall. The club was organized in 1908 by Mrs. George Gravatt."

n "Preston Bruce Jr., 21, of Washington, D. C., a Negro ball player whom President Eisenhower recommended to the Pittsburgh Pirates, has been engaged to teach in an all-white elementary school in this southern Vermont village [Readsboro]. Bruce, who pitched this summer for the Salem, Va., Rebels ... will meet his first classes on Monday."

n "Roanoke City officials and bankers today began a marathon writing task which will result in $2.4 million for Roanoke's school construction program. They are signing 2,400 bonds of $1,000 denomination, sold last month to a New York brokerage firm."

n "From the famous breweries of Munich, Germany, to the historic quarters of the Mountain Brewing Co. in Roanoke is the path which has been trod by one Otto Noissinger. Otto is the large, friendly -- and typically German -- brewmaster at the brewery."

n "A 'better than even' chance of relocating an east-west interstate highway route through Roanoke and Lynchburg was seen today as a potent group of southwest and southside Virginians organized the Water Level Route Assn."

n "School is out at Gainsboro -- permanently. For the first time since 1898, bells didn't ring there as school opened last week. Its children are now attending the new Lincoln Terrace Elementary School."

n "The Norfolk and Western Railway today agreed to relocation of a portion of its track in Roanoke to make way for a proposed interstate highway access road."

n "A Roanoke County landmark is being razed to make room for a new building. The brick home, built before the Civil War, is just west of Salem across the highway from Andrew Lewis Tavern.

1933 (75 years ago)

n "Beer-drinking restrictions have been placed on all members of the Roanoke fire department and there is a possibility that similar orders may be issued to the police department."

n "The first hole in one in the history of the Mountain Lake golf course was made today by Lawrence Coppage of Richmond."

n "Built on ground once owned by the man whose name it bears, the Andrew Lewis high school in Salem was dedicated last night."

n "Ten Keystone bombers from Langley Field passed over Roanoke yesterday en route to Bluefield to participate in the air meet."

n "At least two secret night practices are on the Roanoke College Maroons' schedule in their final four days of preparation for the opening clash with William and Mary's Indians Saturday."

n "The doors of the Roanoke Theater were reopened yesterday on a remodeled interior harmonizing with a renewed front."

n "Eunice Poindexter, regarded as one of the leading singers among the negro race in Roanoke, will give a recital on Friday night, at 8:15 o'clock, at the First Baptist Church, colored."

1908 (100 years ago)

n "The police department is now engaged in the work of rigidly inspecting all water closets in the city for the purpose of ascertaining whether or not they are maintained in a condition to comply with the city ordinances."

n "There is to be inaugurated in the city of Roanoke a campaign in behalf of organized labor. This campaign will eventually extend to every city in Virginia. Roanoke, however, is to see the birth of the great movement."

n "The opening of the Belmont school yesterday brought scores of children from their happy vacation to enter upon the stern duty of study."

n "How the fire originated that destroyed the Norfolk & Western depot at Boone's Mill, is still a profound mystery."

n "The Evening News' subscribers at Norwich will please report to Mr. R. E. Puckett when the carrier boy fails to leave the paper, or when they wish to change address."

n "The Casino was again filled last evening by an appreciate audience. The attraction was 'The Circus Girl,' the last of the series. There is nothing draggy about this play and if there were any who had not laughed for years they broke the spell when 'The Circus Girl' appeared."

n "Some prank pulled fire box 125 last night at midnight. The companies responded, but upon their arrival at the scene of the would-be fire they found that there was nothing doing and hiked back to their slumbers."